Portsmouth: Crossing app for wheelchair users given green light

The app has been built for those who use mobility scooters and wheelchairs

A smartphone app which helps wheelchair users safely cross at busy road junctions has been adopted by a council.

It can be used to activate pedestrian crossings and the technology has been installed at several junctions across Portsmouth.

Locations include the well-used crossing between Park Road and St Georges Road outside Gunwharf Quays.

Portsmouth City Council said it wanted to improve accessibility in the area.

'Simpler and easier'

Buttons positioned at a lower level have also been added to the crossing near the outlet shopping centre, putting them within easy reach of cyclists.

Using the app would offer a "simpler and easier" way for disabled people to cross the road, the authority said.

Alternatively, people can hold their hand under the push button unit instead of pressing the button.

The technology, by SmartCross, has also been installed at Winston Churchill Avenue, Goldsmith Avenue, Victoria Road North and the junction at Milton Road and Velder Avenue.

Crossings in Marketway, Commercial Road North and London Road will get the upgrade later this year.

In addition, the junctions have built-in detectors which monitor whether pedestrians are using the crossing, resulting in a "more intelligent" flow of traffic, according to the council.

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